It’s like the nonprofit Superbowl. It’s barely 8:00 AM and I’m already on a rant to my poor, unsuspecting roommate about how special Giving Tuesday is. Later, I will log on to my work computer to a “Happy Giving Tuesday” message from a colleague. It’s nice to be understood.
According to Wikipedia, #GivingTuesday is a "global generosity movement unleashing the power of people and organizations to transform their communities and the world." Because most of my social media is nonprofit-related, as are most of the email newsletters I’m subscribed to, Giving Tuesday is my kind of holiday. I love waking up and scrolling through emails, stories, and campaigns that organizations and individuals put together with one goal in mind—make the world a better place.
I’ve never been a big shopper and the thought of going to a mall this month is enough to make me hide under the covers. And anyone who knows me knows I’m frugal to a fault. But on Giving Tuesday? Each year, I give myself a set amount of money to spread amongst nonprofits that I believe in. This year, I thought I would share some of that love and tell you where my donations went. Please note this is not a definitive list of every nonprofit I care about. There are so many groups doing incredible work. I encourage you to find an organization working toward a cause you are passionate about. I’ll also note that I have personal connections to every one of these organizations. Many of the following organizations were founded by friends and mentors of mine. (None of them know I’m writing this.) Or, I’ve worked, volunteered, or been otherwise involved with them. It really is true about how personal connections mean the most. So here are my personal connections to #GivingTuesday2022.
P.W.H.S. Homeless Animals Support Network (HASN) partners with shelters and rescues in the state of Virginia to further the no-kill Virginia vision and save the state's most vulnerable animals. Realizing that not all communities have access to needed resources, HASN strives to bridge the gap by advocating for and offering financial assistance and resources for food, supplies, medical treatments, and more for homeless and adoptable pets living in Virginia.
The Pollination Project is a grant funding organization that uses the money they raise to invest in grassroots projects by people who seek to create a more compassionate world. Every day of the year, their network selects a new project that will receive $1,000 in seed funding. As that project blossoms, leaders can access capacity-building support, encouragement, and connectivity with others. Through these efforts, they seed a vibrant community of global changemakers who seek to spread compassion in the world for the benefit of all.
Jardin de los Niños is a non-profit organization with a Five-Star early childhood education program certified by the FOCUS Program of New Mexico. They are designated as a Trauma-Informed Care Center by the New Mexico Association for Infant Mental Health. They provide early childhood education, therapeutic intervention, and comprehensive services to homeless and near-homeless children, from the ages of six weeks to 10 years, and their families.
The Leaders Readers Network (TLRN) cultivates leaders and readers to support equitable education and literacy for all. Working hand in hand with students, teachers, and community members, TLRN provides students from all backgrounds the opportunity to fall in love with reading and to harness their highest educational potentials.
Story Pirates is a renowned educational media company that brings together top comedians, musicians, designers, best-selling authors, and incredible teachers to amplify the words, ideas, and stories of kids on the world stage. Their aim is to nurture and inspire the big thinkers,
dreamers, and creative problem solvers of tomorrow. The mission of the Story Pirates is to celebrate the words and ideas of young people and to create confident, literate students equipped with a variety of tools for written, verbal, and artistic self-expression. Story Pirates Changemakers makes those tools accessible to under-resourced communities and families.
Girls Health Ed mission is to advance gender equality by fostering healthy, empowered, and informed decision-making in girls worldwide. They provide medically accurate and comprehensive health and sexuality education programming to adolescent girls and young women from underserved communities in the United States and internationally via a proven Teaching Fellow (train-the-trainer) and community partner-driven model. Their comprehensive curriculum covers nutrition; physical activity; body image; puberty and personal care; violence prevention, healthy relationships, and consent; menstruation; and reproductive health.
YEA Camp trains aspiring activists to make a bigger difference in the world. Every summer since YEA Camp began in 2009, they’ve brought together the most amazing group of changemakers they can find to help train their campers to make a bigger difference on social justice issues such as climate change, racism, LGBTQIA+ rights, and animal activism, to name a few.
